The rise and fall of America's drive-in restaurants

Business Insider | 11-09-2026 04:08pm |

In the mid-20th century, the United States had 40,000 drive-in restaurants featuring intercom ordering and carhops who delivered food on steel trays. Today, only a handful of family-owned drive-ins remain, with Superdawg in Chicago being the city's last. An hour north, the Miller family continues the Dog N Suds name with foot-long hot dogs, classic car cruise nights, and homemade root beer. Chief correspondent Abby Narishkin visits these two locations to explore how they have survived and what the future holds for drive-ins.

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